


Blindsided

by entrenched



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: (the guys are only in this for about five seconds tbh), Gen, More genfic but ship if you squint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-10
Updated: 2017-02-10
Packaged: 2018-09-23 06:26:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9644339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/entrenched/pseuds/entrenched
Summary: In a brief reprieve before the team sets out to Gralea, Aranea happens upon a particularly haggard companion.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first (and will probably be the only) time writing for the fandom, which is a daunting thing in and of itself, given the game’s popularity and my fear of annihilating characters in my writing. Anyway, spoilers for events of Chapter 9.

Since the events in Altissia, a cruel tension remained among Noctis’s friends.  

Ignis did not blame anyone for the tension, as it was more than appropriate given the circumstances. It did not, however, change the fact that it rendered each of his companions virtually unapproachable. Noctis had long since converted into a cross-section between perpetual grief and anxiousness – a state which the young man rightly deserved to be in, much to Gladiolus’s annoyance. All the while, young Prompto was doing his best to keep things together with his ever cheerful disposition, but to little avail. 

“Let us each prepare for the journey ahead before we depart,” Ignis suggested, in a last ditch effort to ease the growing tension. “When you are all finished preparing, meet back here for departure.”

The man did not have to see to sense Prompto’s freckled face light up, eager to leave the awkwardness hanging over the group. He dashed away from the group, half-dragging Noctis behind him. With a low growl of assent, Gladio parted from their meeting point to “look at supplies,” more than likely meaning he needed his space too.  

“Do you need anything?” the shield asked cautiously.

“No, I’m going to just stay here for a bit,” Ignis said, taking a seat on a wooden bench. 

“Right.” Ignis listened as Gladio’s heavy footsteps deafened into whatever distant place was left to explore.  

It had been a fair amount of time since the advisor’s world had become steeped in darkness. He had definitely not acclimated it to blindness completely, but Ignis felt his other senses open up much wider than he had ever felt before. The frigid morning air stung his skin much more. The sound of the wind sweeping dust into the abyss was almost deafening...

‘What can I possibly do now,’ the man wondered as he breathed a deep exhale. 

In retrospect, it was rather cruel. Taking his sight was a better bargain than taking his life, but until recently, Ignis had been left feeling that the two were almost one and the same.

“Well, look who it is,” said a silky voice from behind. 

Ignis whipped his head around, half-wondering what the point of it was, as enough people were shuffling around him that he couldn’t possibly identify the person as quickly as he would have liked. Instead, he listened from behind as stiff heel clicks pressed harshly onto the boards below their feet. As the clicks grew louder, Ignis sensed the air grow stronger with the scent of fiery ash mixed with flowers. An odd combination, fitting for what he and his companions believed to be an equally odd woman.

“A good day to you, Aranea,” the man greeted politely, not looking in her direction. Ignis listened as the sharp tip of her lance dragged lazily behind her, etching a trail on the ground as she walked toward him.

He felt the woman stop before him and watched carefully as her blurry outline arched over him.

“Something looks… different about you,” Aranea said in the same sultry voice. 

Ignis felt as her gloved hand stroked the side of his face, tipping his chin toward what he could only assume was her face.

“Thank you for informing me of that,” Ignis said dryly. “As I cannot be sure myself of how I look right now.”

Ignis felt the hired-hand's grip on his chin tighten slightly in mild irritation. (Was she irritated? He could not tell…) Truthfully, Ignis hadn’t intended to be so cynical with the dragoon lady as he had actually forged a decent bond with Aranea through the few times she had crashed their party. While she always came in unannounced, she was never unwelcomed. 

He breathed a sigh of relief as he felt her pinch his cheek swiftly and lower into the seat beside him. 

“Well then, isn’t someone sarcastic today.” Aranea laughed. 

“Yes, I believe it’s one of the few traits I could maintain at this point with minimal effort,” Ignis said heavily. 

Ignis prepared himself for an immediate retort at his increasingly sardonic attitude. While part of him realized that such behavior was unbecoming of a royal advisor, another part of him felt entitled to hating the world just a bit for the time being. The bond between his dearest friends was being tested and at that moment, Ignis felt that they were failing miserably. The very thought of continuing their journey with such heavy air hanging left a permanent crease in Ignis’s forehead.

“Where are your boys?” Aranea asked warily, breaking the painful silence developing between them. Ignis was secretly grateful for her tact in that regard.

“They’ve split up,” he replied shortly. “They will be back soon.”  

“I see…” the woman said casually. “Oh wait…” 

“Before you say anything, don’t.” Ignis told her, shifting his cloudy eyes toward her silhouette. “I know what you mean.”

“Good,” Aranea said with a soft chuckle. “I don’t mean to prod fun, but this is my first time seeing you up close… like  _this_ …” 

“As it did happen very recently, I don’t suppose many have seen me like ‘this’ either.”

“How bad is it?” Aranea asked bluntly. 

Ignis contemplated the question carefully. While the events of past days had basically rendered him permanently disabled and feeling utterly useless to his friends, Ignis was rather surprised at how steadfast he had been, all things considered. The man was well-known for being the most composed of the group, as Noctis had enough emotionality for the rest of them. But Ignis could only maintain his cool composure as long as he could calculate fifty or a hundred steps ahead. 

Now, everything had gone wrong, blindsiding him completely. And it did not seem that things would be getting any better.

“Things could be better.” Ignis decided to reply. Vague enough to convey his feelings, but not enough to betray his discomfort with weakness and solitude among his friends. 

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Aranea said shortly.

“I appreciate the sentiment,” the man said with a nod.

“I’ll have you know, in case you aren’t aware, that I’m giving you a pass for all these snide comments.” A laugh followed. 

‘Good,’ Ignis thought. He could only test her patience for so long until she’d get up and have the side of her lance pressed against his throat.

“Of course,” Ignis said with a shadowy grin in her direction. “Thank you.”

“For what it’s worth,” she started. “The world has gone to shit. There isn’t much to see here anyway.” 

 “While I am fully aware of that, I wouldn’t be able to see the few things worth seeing even if I wanted to.” Ignis said darkly.

“Like my beautiful face?” Aranea responded in partial jest.

“Like your beautiful face.” Ignis responded in complete jest.

Ignis laughed softly, amazed at how tight his facial muscles had become from the tense interactions among his friends. The deadly lady sitting next to him was exactly as he had originally pegged her: smart and tactful. Tactful enough to know that a bit of ribbing was needed for such dark times.

“Luckily, the little prince has you to help him navigate this crapsack world,” Aranea said almost casually.

“Unfortunately, he will need much more than me now, especially given… recent circumstances,” the man sighed. 

“As I am now, I can only hold them back.” Ignis paused for a moment, mildly amused that he had verbalized a thought so intimate to a woman who happened upon him by chance. 

“That may be true…” Aranea mused. “Or it could not be. Who knows?” 

“I can’t see.” Ignis said flatly.

“You don’t need eyes to make decent judgments,” the woman said. “Think what you like, but that kid would probably be lost without you. The small flirty one leading would most likely get him killed.”

Ignis could not help but laugh as he remembered countless times Prompto almost killed the entire group simply by driving the car. As he relaxed his brow, he stared serenely at nothing in particular, wondering how much he could really do now that he lost a vital sense for not only combat, but the activity he loved most.

“Don’t be stupid,” Aranea continued, as if reading the bubbling self-consciousness Ignis normally associated with Noctis. “Those fools need you to help clean up this mess.” 

“I appreciate that,” Ignis said warmly. “Honestly, thank you.” 

From a distance, Ignis could hear the echo of a grumbling Noctis struggling to tune out an ever-cheerful Prompto. The two were approaching slowly with what sounded to Ignis like a literal ton of supplies.

“We’ll be departing soon,” Ignis said, rising from the bench. “I’ll be seeing you around then, Aranea.”

The dangerous woman laughed sweetly and sighed. “You won’t be seeing me, but I’ll see you around.”

“Goodbye then, Aranea.”

 “You boys be careful out there.”

**Author's Note:**

> (I’d sell my car for an Aranea DLC.)
> 
> Anyway, I liked the idea of these two bantering, because they both seem to complement each other well with their cool demeanors. The game touches on it, but Ignis doubting his use was fun to play around with, even if he’s normally pretty rational.
> 
> I’d have made this (more) shippy but I can’t write romance to save my life.


End file.
